I Promise, This is the Last “…of the Year”-Type Post
After this, we’re done with 2009, but before January gets here and we all step one day closer to armageddoom, there 
are a couple experiences I want to share/rehash one more time, since they turned out to be defining moments of the year. There were a bunch of great shows and festivals, good times were had, but there was little that compared with Roadburn and Planet Caravan.
Flying to The Netherlands for the first time was cool enough in itself, but going with a purpose — specifically to see the Saint Vitus reunion — made it all the better. And bearing witness to acts like Ufomammut, Colour Haze (for the second time), Cathedral, Church of Misery, Wino, Firebird, Neurosis and about a million others only added to the excitement. But really, it was the communion with the gods that motivated me to get off my ass and finally get over there, and I can honestly say that Roadburn 2009 was the pinnacle of the year. I’ve mentioned it more times than I can even think of in reviews and interviews with bands, and it has shaped every opinion of shows I’ve been to since — usually to their detriment. Even seeing Vitus in Brooklyn, as killer as it was, didn’t stack up to seeing them at 013 in Tilburg.
By contrast, I drove 10 hours solid to get to Asheville, North Carolina, for Planet Caravan. The vibe was much more American, even though the bands weren’t necessarily — Orange Goblin being a notable import for the occasion — and although it couldn’t really compare to Roadburn in its inaugural state, there were no shortage of incredible acts to check out: Zoroaster, Clutch, Burst, Wino again, Kylesa and Pentagram all ruled, but it was YOB who, like Vitus, got me off the couch. Admittedly, a close second was catching the legendary awesomeness of Pentagram for the first time (I’d missed those shows they did in NYC), and knowing it was probably the only time I’d ever get the chance to see Burst made that all the more special. But true enough to what I expected going into it, YOB destroyed all in their path. Worth pulling out the earplugs for, worth the hearing loss residual.
I’ll stop short of waxing poetic or intellectual about the meaningful nature of these sets since, as Devin Townsend reminds us, “It’s just entertainment, folks,” but there’s something to be said about what you do with your time and the memories you make as you go along. Actually, there’s a lot to be said about it, but I think it’s mostly implied. In any case, of all the places I managed to put myself in 2009 — grad school, this chair (a lot), numerous record stores, etc. — I know as long as I remember anything, I’ll remember Planet Caravan and especially Roadburn.
